How to Make Homemade Sauce Tomat: Classic Tomato Sauce Recipe

Sauce tomat is one of the five mother sauces in classical French cuisine. The sauce is made by cooking tomatoes in a base of pork fat, aromatics, and stock until it reduces into a thick sauce. Traditionally, it was further thickened with a roux, but modern adaptations often skip this step.

Although similar in appearance, there are some differences between French sauce tomato and Italian tomato sauce. When compared with a simple Italian tomato sauce recipe, sauce tomat requires a longer cooking time and extra ingredients to develop its rich flavors. The additional items are:

1. 1. Pork fat. Salted pork is rendered for its flavorful fat and used to sauté aromatic vegetables, like garlic, onion, carrots, and celery (aka mirepoix).
2. 2. Veal Stock. Veal stock is considered a staple in traditional French cooking. It plays an important role for a rich base flavor in the sauce. In home kitchens, veal stock can be substituted for chicken stock.
3. 3. Herbal sachet. A sachet of fresh herbs, such as thyme, parsley, and bay leaves, is added while the sauce is simmering.
4. 4. Roux. Traditionally roux (a flour-based thickener) is used to add a rich texture to the sauce, but modern versions may skip it or use tomato paste instead.

The derivatives of tomato sauce include:

1. 1. Portuguese sauce: A sauce of sautéed onions, chopped tomatoes, and cloves of garlic that's finished with chopped fresh parsley.
2. 2. Spanish sauce: A spicier sauce of sautéed onions, green peppers, mushrooms, and garlic.
3. 3. Creole sauce: A sauce of sautéed onions, celery, green peppers, bay leaf, thyme, red pepper, and garlic.

• Pasta sauce. Serve homemade tomato sauce over homemade al dente pasta and shavings of Parmesan cheese.
• Lasagna. Tomato sauce can be used in layers with ground beef and cheese in lasagna.
• Pizza. Spread tomato sauce in a thin layer over freshly rolled out pizza dough and finish with toppings like mozzarella and fresh basil.
• Polenta. Spoon tomato sauce generously over creamy or fried polenta.
  
• Meatballs or Meatloaf. Spoon warmed tomato sauce over homemade meatballs and meatloaf for the ultimate comfort food.
• Eggs in Purgatory. Try simmering a cup of tomato sauce with red pepper flakes in a small skillet and gently crack in two eggs. Cover and cook over medium-high heat until the egg whites set. Finish with grated Parmesan and chopped fresh basil.
• Poached Cod. Cod becomes extra flavorful when poached in tomato sauce. Spoon extra sauce over the fish when serving.
• Mozzarella Sticks. Use tomato sauce to dunk crispy, gooey mozzarella sticks.

Sauce tomat is one of the five mother sauces in classical French cuisine. The sauce is made by cooking tomatoes in a base of pork fat, aromatics, and stock until it reduces into a thick sauce. Traditionally, it was further thickened with a roux, but modern adaptations often skip this step.

Although similar in appearance, there are some differences between French sauce tomato and Italian tomato sauce. When compared with a simple Italian tomato sauce recipe, sauce tomat requires a longer cooking time and extra ingredients to develop its rich flavors. The additional items are:

1. 1. Pork fat. Salted pork is rendered for its flavorful fat and used to sauté aromatic vegetables, like garlic, onion, carrots, and celery (aka mirepoix).
2. 2. Veal Stock. Veal stock is considered a staple in traditional French cooking. It plays an important role for a rich base flavor in the sauce. In home kitchens, veal stock can be substituted for chicken stock.
3. 3. Herbal sachet. A sachet of fresh herbs, such as thyme, parsley, and bay leaves, is added while the sauce is simmering.
4. 4. Roux. Traditionally roux (a flour-based thickener) is used to add a rich texture to the sauce, but modern versions may skip it or use tomato paste instead.

The derivatives of tomato sauce include:

1. 1. Portuguese sauce: A sauce of sautéed onions, chopped tomatoes, and cloves of garlic that's finished with chopped fresh parsley.
2. 2. Spanish sauce: A spicier sauce of sautéed onions, green peppers, mushrooms, and garlic.
3. 3. Creole sauce: A sauce of sautéed onions, celery, green peppers, bay leaf, thyme, red pepper, and garlic.

• Pasta sauce. Serve homemade tomato sauce over homemade al dente pasta and shavings of Parmesan cheese.
• Lasagna. Tomato sauce can be used in layers with ground beef and cheese in lasagna.
• Pizza. Spread tomato sauce in a thin layer over freshly rolled out pizza dough and finish with toppings like mozzarella and fresh basil.
• Polenta. Spoon tomato sauce generously over creamy or fried polenta.
  
• Meatballs or Meatloaf. Spoon warmed tomato sauce over homemade meatballs and meatloaf for the ultimate comfort food.
• Eggs in Purgatory. Try simmering a cup of tomato sauce with red pepper flakes in a small skillet and gently crack in two eggs. Cover and cook over medium-high heat until the egg whites set. Finish with grated Parmesan and chopped fresh basil.
• Poached Cod. Cod becomes extra flavorful when poached in tomato sauce. Spoon extra sauce over the fish when serving.
• Mozzarella Sticks. Use tomato sauce to dunk crispy, gooey mozzarella sticks.